Photo: David J. Stang, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Light
- part shade to full shade. It takes filtered morning sun, but in full sun it needs extra water and the leaves go a lighter green
- Water
- medium. Keep it evenly moist the first season; after that it handles a dry spell, though a pot still wants a drink every week in summer
- Toxicity
- not listed by ASPCA or Pet Poison Helpline. Absence from those lists is not evidence of safety
| Type | Grass |
|---|---|
| Sun | Part sun, shade |
| Water | Medium |
| Size | 3 to 6 in tall, 8 to 12 in wide |
| Plant in | fall or early spring |
| Interest | Spring, summer, fall, winter |
| Upstate winter | Survives our winter |
| Hardy zones | 7 to 10 |
| Use in | Containers, beds |
| Role | Groundcover, filler |
Toxicity not independently confirmed: Not listed by ASPCA or Pet Poison Helpline. If you have pets, check with the ASPCA or your vet before putting this one where they can reach it.
Dwarf mondo grass is not a grass at all, but it works exactly like one: a tidy evergreen tuft, 3 to 6 inches tall, that finishes the soil line under a taller plant or edges a shady walk. It is dark green in shade, stays put, and looks the same in January as it does in July. When a shaded porch pot needs something low and green that will not quit, this is usually it.
In the Upstate
It is evergreen here and hardy well past our winters, and a pot’s roots seeing a zone colder than the ground does not worry it. By late winter the older leaves can look ragged, so shear the shaggy growth in early spring before new leaves start. Summer is easy as long as it has shade. In full sun it survives, but it needs more water and loses that deep green.
In a container
Its job is groundcover: a skirt of green around the base of a fern, a hellebore, or a small boxwood. It spreads slowly by short underground stems and takes years to fill much space, so buy enough plugs to cover the soil on day one. Water a shaded pot about once a week in summer, more if the mix dries fast. It never needs swapping out mid-season.
Care
Water to keep the soil moist the first year, then ease off. It does not need heavy feeding, and a little slow-release fertilizer in spring is plenty. Shear old leaves in early spring, and watch for slugs and for scale on the leaf blades. The one thing that kills it is hot full sun with dry soil. Give it shade and it is close to no-maintenance.
Want this planted for the light you actually have? Start a project
Sources
- Clemson HGIC 1110, Mondo Grass (hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/mondo-grass/)
- NC State Extension Plant Toolbox, Ophiopogon japonicus 'Nana' (plants.ces.ncsu.edu)
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, Ophiopogon japonicus (missouribotanicalgarden.org)
- ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant list, searched for Ophiopogon and mondo grass, no entry (aspca.org)
